The Giving USA Foundation

Since 1955, Sentergroup’s client Giving USA Foundation has produced an annual report on data and trends in U.S. charitable giving, known as Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy. In addition to conducting the research, their research partner had historically handled the management of sales and marketing, which began to stagnate in recent years. In 2015, the Foundation, staffed by the Sentergroup team, began taking over production and marketing of the report and related products, charged with revitalizing sales and elevating the brand.

“Taking on the responsibility of production and marketing of our seminal publication, Giving USA, was no small task. Sentergroup not only took on the challenge successfully, but excelled in their execution of our initiatives, proven by our record-breaking year in sales.”

Execution

From figuring out spine widths and ISBN numbers to delivering turn-key promotional materials to partners, Sentergroup staff members quickly learned the lessons of book publishing and promotion.

With the help of dedicated volunteer committee leaders, Sentergroup started by building the marketing and sales process from the ground-up, with a new online store and sales strategy. We found all information available on past purchasers and started to aggressively market new products, using limited-time promotions and exclusive discounts to spur action.

The book itself underwent a transformation, with enlarged font size, the addition of pull quotes, infographics, and more imagery for a better, less intimidating reading experience. We introduced webinars for purchasers on the report’s data trends, offered exclusive discounts to industry partners in exchange for promotion to their audiences, and expanded the product line with more options.

Service Highlights

Outcome Summary

While the team gained their footing in 2015 and met their sales goals, the effort truly took off in 2016. With a year of experience under their belt, sales of the 2016 edition products exceeded its goal by 97% even before the fiscal year ended, which was less than two months after the release of the book.

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increase in sales over 2015

Discount codes used during campaign

new customers

Thought Leadership

A Year in Book Publishing: Lessons that Cross Client Lines

Read Jean’s blog post about how Sentergroup not only learned the ropes of book publishing, but successfully doubled sales in year two of offering the service.